


Nightmares

by cloudy_reality



Series: TLOU One-Shots | English [1]
Category: The Last of Us (Video Games)
Genre: David is his own warning, Ellie (The Last of Us) Needs a Hug, Father-Daughter Relationship, Gen, No TLOU 2 spoilers, Parent Joel (The Last of Us), Post TLOU 1, Protective Joel (The Last of Us), Settled in Jackson, just some fluff, mention of rape
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-19
Updated: 2020-09-19
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:40:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,371
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26546920
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cloudy_reality/pseuds/cloudy_reality
Summary: Ellie is still having nightmares from last winter, especially about David. But Joel is there to comfort and reassure her.
Relationships: Ellie & Joel (The Last of Us)
Series: TLOU One-Shots | English [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1952059
Kudos: 40





	Nightmares

"You're a very special girl, Ellie. And you're even more than that to me." The man known as David whispered, as he opened the small prison in which the girl was locked. An icy shiver ran down her spine when she saw the man in front of her coming dangerously close to her after closing the door. They were alone here, no one around. Only her and her abuser. David's smile was sick, full of bad thoughts. But she couldn't escape. His hand grabbed her hair and the next moment she saw his big shadow leaning over her. She screamed.  
  


Ellie sat up in her bed, sweating. Her whole body was shaking, and her hands were sweaty. A first sob escaped from her lips before she began to cry. Sometimes she would dream about this man, even months later. This event had broken something inside her, something called innocence. David...She trusted him. How could she? He was eating human meat, and he wanted to rape her.  
  


Still shaking, the girl got up and looked out the window. It was pitch black outside, and it was cold. She couldn't go back to sleep, at least not alone in that small garage that was now her room. Calming her sobs, she grabbed one of her coats, a scarf, and her canvas sneakers. She needed to get some fresh air, those dreams terrified her, they were so realistic. She also took her bag and turned on her flashlight so she could guide herself through the darkness. She opened the door and shoved her feet into several inches of snow, making a slight creaking sound. The teen pulled her wool scarf up to her nose and covered her ears with it. She would take a little walk and then go back to bed. She was safe in Jackson, nothing to be afraid of. She glanced over to Joel's house, she didn't want to wake him up for this. She was grown up now, she didn't need to...  
  


"Ellie! Hey Ellie, are you okay?" Joel asked as he opened the front door of his house. He just had time to put on his shoes, not even his coat. He approached her and put his hands on her shoulders, she jumped slightly after the touch.  
  


"Yeah...I'm okay...  
  


\- I really thought I heard you scream. What are you doin' up at this hour?" the old man asked. Ellie snorted softly before looking up at Joel. She hoped he wouldn't see her tears in the dark. She wanted him to see her as a strong girl, not a whiny kid. She swallowed and focused so that her voice wouldn't betray her condition.  
  


"I just had a nightmare. I wanted to go around to get my mind off it. And you, what are you doing up? Huh? " She asked, raising an eyebrow. Joel, with half a smile, shrugged his shoulders and stuck his hands in his jean’s pockets.  
  


" Too much coffee. You'll catch a cold if you stay outside, come on. "He said, he put his hand behind her back and let her into his house. From the time they had moved to Jackson, this house seemed like Joel's real house. It looked just like him. Records and movies from the '80s, statues, his guitars...and much more. There was even a self-portrait she had drawn for him in the living room. He often complimented her on her drawings, so she gave it to him for his birthday. It had made him very happy, by the way.  
  


Ellie sat on Joel's couch and inhaled the pleasant smell that was there. The recent smell of the fireplace. It wasn't too cold in here, she felt good. Her adoptive father brought a blanket from his room and put it on her shoulders to warm her up. He also put on a vest.  
  


"Well...since we're both awake and we're not about to fall asleep, do you want to tell me about your nightmare?" Joel asked, he was worried. He wasn't stupid, he saw the helplessness in Ellie's eyes and the reflection of her tears on her cheeks. He didn't need to point out those details, he knew she wouldn't like it. The teen wrapped herself in the blanket and looked down, should she talk to him about it? Or reassure him? No, he would see that it wasn't right. Joel knew her far too well. After a little sigh, she looked up at him.  
  


"I dreamt about last winter. About him." she replied in a gasp, it didn't take much more for Joel to understand exactly what - and who - she was talking about. She brought her legs to her chest and squeezed them tightly, feeling a weight twisting her stomach. She would never forget his face. The smile he was giving her. And also the look of his face that she had literally cut into pieces with a machete. This thought gave her a hard shiver. At that moment, Joel felt great guilt. Ellie was just a 15-year-old girl, and he hadn't been there for her when she needed to talk. Like when she wanted to talk about Tess. About Sam and Henry. He had coldly refused to talk about them, but now he regretted that choice.  
  


After a long moment of hesitation, Joel made up his mind and took Ellie in his arms. That's what she needed. He was clearly uncomfortable - perhaps the fear of being pushed away? But it came from his heart. Since this big journey, he would always be there for her. As long as he could.  
  


" This motherfucker's not coming back. I can tell you that if someone else tries to hurt ya, he's going to be hurt pretty bad. I'll protect you. " He said in a reassuring, even fatherly voice in Ellie's eyes. She closed her eyes, Joel's hugs were rare and precious. So, she had to enjoy them.  
  


"Thank you, Joel. "she replied. Sometimes Joel wasn't very demonstrative and clumsy, but she understood that he cared about her very much. She wasn't alone anymore, and it was so comforting.  
  


She was about to fall asleep when Joel gently backed away and grabbed the remote control from the table. Yes, electricity also meant TV. He bumped Ellie's head with it, the girl giggled and put both hands on her head.  
  


" Hey, stop ! " That comment made him laugh. He got up and went to get a tape from the TV cabinet. A comedy, she didn't need a drama or a horror movie tonight. He lifted the tape up to show Ellie.  
  


"How 'bout a comedy, kiddo ? We used to do that all the time with Sarah, when we couldn't sleep. Well, we'd have sleepless nights, but that was fun. "He said, Ellie smiled at him. She enjoyed listening to Joel's stories about his past life. It fascinated and intrigued her.  
  


"Oh, hell yeah! "she replied. So Joel inserted the tape and played the movie. He then sat down beside Ellie. Ellie made herself comfortable and settled down on the couch. It was amazing how good she felt at Joel's place. She felt at home there. She assumed that's the way it used to feel when you had your own house and knew where to go home to every night. Without realizing it, she felt so good that she fell asleep in the middle of the movie. Seeing this, Joel couldn't help but giggle softly.  
  


"I won." he whispered. He made her lie down on the couch and placed the blanket over her to keep her warm. He also turned off the TV so she could sleep peacefully. It wasn't rare for Ellie to end up falling asleep here instead of going to her room, especially after a movie night or a stressful day. And, of course, he didn't mind at all. If she felt comfortable there, she could stay.  
  
  
The old man went up to his room, he also had to sleep so that he could help his brother the next day. Sometimes he had nightmares too. Most often, it was bad dreams about Sarah's death, or Ellie's death. He didn't regret what he had done to save her, and he would never regret it.

**Author's Note:**

> After playing TLOU 2 , I just wanted to write happy events with Joel and Ellie, I hope you liked it ! I'll probably write more One-Shots, I have some other ideas with these two :)


End file.
